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In 1990, Harriet Wheeler and David Gavurin of The Sundays put out their first album, Reading, Writing And Arithmetic. Full of crisp, jangly popdriven by Wheeler's sweetly lilting vocals and Gavurin's shimmering guitar linesthe album was warmly received for the bright pop moment it was. Two years later came Blind, which sounded, well, an awful lot like its predecessor. Then, for five years: nothing. Wheeler and Gavurin had a baby, spent some time off, and set to recording another album that sounds, well, an awful lot like Reading, Writing And Arithmetic. All of that record's ingredients remain intact: Wheeler's voice is beautiful, wavering between a girlish coo and a soaring swoon, and Gavurin's guitar work illuminates tons of warm, sharp hooks. The only difference, besides five years of passed time, is that Static & Silence is a bit slower and more melancholy; there's still a sunny tone, to be sure, but songs like "When I'm Thinking About You" and "I Can't Wait" (which, honest to God, samples chirping birds) are drawn out and delivered at a more deliberate pace than usual. Static & Silence is far from essential, but The Sundays' return provides a welcome respite from all the ghastly Our Lady Peace records out there.